Willow Episode 2 Review: Of Struggles and Disbelief

I am behind. I know, but I trudge ahead. I like doing reviews, and I like watching shows, but I can’t sit there and watch a show without pointing out things that have been done in the past in other shows and books.

This is what we have here, another chapter in the tale that uses tropes and time-worn devices to put a story together.

If you haven’t seen the show yet, there will be spoilers.

We start with a flashback for exposition. This is better than telling us what happened.

In a couple of the many flashbacks, we see Willow and Sorsha grow apart as friends due to one wanting to teach Elora how to use her magic, Willow, and the other wanting Elora to live a normal life without worrying about saving the world, Sorsha.

Though I can understand Sorsha’s point of view, the chosen one is just that, chosen. So the Queen in her lack of logical thinking tells Willow he couldn’t possibly train Elora because

You are not a great sorcerer, and you will never be.
-Sorsha

This is a verbal slap in the face of Willow who promptly leaves. We find him in another flashback talking to Elora and trying to get her to go with him. He is threatened if he doesn’t stop. He leaves under the impression he is not wanted. I personally did not like how this went, but it is what it is. I think they have changed Sorsha’s character and not for the better in this regard.

Madmartigan we learned was sent on a quest to find and bring back a magical cuirass to strengthen the barrier and has yet to return. Sorsha thinks he’s dead. This is better than assuming he’s a deadbeat dad, but why not tell the kids? This makes no sense. Why would you allow your children to believe a lie about their father? I am not naive. Considering the love the two had for one another in the movie, you would think Sorsha would not allow her kids, especially Kit to believe their dad did not care about them.

We get flung back into the present where we are once again told that Kit doesn’t believe that muffin girl is Elora. She is adamant about her disbelief to the point where she could give a shit less about Elora running off without telling anyone where she is. Willow does scold her for it, but Kit doesn’t seem phased. She is as insufferable as she was in the first episode.

We learn that the lich thing knows about Elora and uses the wound in Ballantine to control the Commander to find her. Sorsha… Sorsha shows concern about the wound but has him head the search party anyway. Who in their right mind does something stupid like that? Pick someone else. I know this is to set up what happens at the end of the episode, but it could have been done better.

Elora is found by Willow by the edge of a river where she admits she’s scared and needs his help. This is where the student/teacher trope comes into play with all its trappings. Further on in the episode, both have doubts. Elora doubts she is the “Chosen one”. Willow is having doubts about whether he is fit to teach her at all. We’ve seen this before.

It is revealed that Boorman was Madmartigan’s squire. Now, Kit is after answers as to what happened to her father.

The end of the episode has Elora being kidnapped and the seed she was trying to sprout growing.

My thoughts

Here we go…

Willow is teaching Elora. Kit is wanting more information about dad. Sorsha and Willow aren’t friends anymore, and Kit doesn’t seem to give a shit about anything if it doesn’t get her what she wants. Did I miss anything? OH YEAH, the commander who is STILL WOUNDED and has a mysterious affliction is told to go find Elora. What could possibly go wrong?

The sets and backdrops are beautiful and very well put together. Some complained about the Nelwyns having to live underground. They were comparing them to Hobbits. Hobbits didn’t do everything underground, nor were they forced underground due to war and conflict.

This episode feels like it was written by a teenager who has watched too many fantasy films and has jumbled everything in their head. The plotlines are forced. The acting… Well, they are doing their best with what they have I suppose.

Kit… Does anyone else want to smack her? I know she’s worried about her brother, and I know she thinks she’s the center of attention, but good God she’s a pain in the ass. I am an only kid, and I have never had a perpetual waiting-to-pitch-a-fit face on all the damn time. It’s tiring.

Any joke that it set up falls flat. Some of the interactions are awkward. It’s just badly written. There are a couple of good interactions, but for the most part, I kept checking the clock to see if it was over yet.

This episode throws a ton at us at once. Normally, I would not mind that, but the pacing for the show is NASCAR-worthy. Even with the pacing, many of the scenes just dragged on to the point where I wished they would just get on with it.